The Hardest Case He'll Ever Face
by Ruthibobs
Summary: John persuades Sherlock to go on a night out, but little does he know how it will change both their lives.  Who is the latest villain?  And can Sherlock solve what is easily the hardest case for him ever?
1. Chapter 1

**OK, finally, my first Sherlock story. Had this going round my head for a while. Now, thanks to CorvidCoccinelle, it finally has a title and is ready to go! So thanks :)**

**Disclaimer: Basically, Conan Doyle owns the characters, the Beeb owns this incarnation of them (and really needs to get them back on the screen sooner!) and I'm just borrowing them for a short period of time. I gain nothing from this, and the only things I own are the storyline and any characters which aren't in the TV series (and if you haven't watched it, then why the hell are you reading this when you should be watching one of the greatest TV shows EVER? sorry, I'll stop rambling now)**

**Just a quick note. Will this is just one big story, it's going to be split up into different parts. So, some parts will have a particular name, some won't.**

**Here goes then.**

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* * *

Part One, Chapter One - Going Out**

"Come on, Sherlock, we're going out," John said firmly, taking Sherlock's coat and scarf and throwing them at him. "You've sat there for nearly eight days now, barely moving. Mrs. Hudson will throw us out if you make one more hole in her wall and I don't have anywhere else to go, never mind you."

"Where?"

"Out," John replied. "You'll see where when we get there"

"Don't want to."

"Look, you're bored and I'm going to go crazy soon, so we're going out before someone is locked up for murder."

John had had a feeling that this would be hopeless, but he had to try something.

"Come on, Sherlock, surely something is better than just lying around doing nothing?" John tried.

Sherlock sighed.

"Fine, I'll come, but only this once." He sounded as if going would make him bored to tears.

Grabbing his coat and scarf, he flung them on and headed to the door. Reaching it, he turned at looked at John.

"Coming?"

"Erm, Sherlock?" John started.

"What?"

John pointed at the grey pyjamas and blue dressing gown Sherlock was wearing under his coat.

"If you think I'd step one foot out of that door with you dressed like that, then you are stupid."

"Don't call me stupid!"

"They are God awful, now go get dressed. And be quick!" John called up the stairs, almost as an afterthought, as Sherlock just reached the top, having climbed them two at a time, as usual.

When he finally got back down again, ten minutes later, John was texting.

"OK, let's go."

* * *

"They're going out, sir," a voice said over the phone.

The man smiled to himself before turning to his companion.

"You have only one task, but that is important. Find out about Sherlock Holmes. I want to know everything. Favourite food, friends, shoe size. Right down to the number of hairs on his head."

"Easy, sir," they replied.

"This is Sherlock, he won't just tell you anything personal. You'll have to get close to him, real close. There is only one other this close. John Watson. He is not important. Just find Sherlock Holmes and once you have, stick to him like glue. Understood?"

"Absolutely."

"Go."

* * *

**Well? I really hope it wasn't too bad. I know it isn't much, but I've got the next bit planned and will write it on the plane this weekend, promise. So just give me a week. Or just over.**

**I won't demand reviews or say that I won't update unless I get a certain amount, but reviews are always nice. They brighten up a writer's day and can help us get better. And I promise to reply. It may not be straight away, but I will reply when I get the email. Honest. So, please, review :)**

**Oh, and a special cyber hug for anyone who got the _A Fish Called Wanda _joke - I can't be the only person out here who's watched it! If you didn't get it, and want to know what it is, then review/PM me and ask.**

**Mouse x**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone! Sorry about the time gap, I meant to update sooner. Honest! However, school exchange came about (the journey gave me the change to write this) and then I had to keep bugging my unofficial beta-reader (the absolutely wonderful Amansrza) to look through it. She nearly took it to France with her this week, which would have meant that next Thursday would be the earliest I could have updated! But, thankfully, she didn't, so here it is.**

**Thank you to my wonderful reviewers. I love you!**

**Disclaimer: Obvious. I don't own Sherlock and John. Duh!**

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**Part One, Chapter One - Night Class**

Although they were in the cab, John knew that the hard bit was still to come - telling Sherlock where they were going.

"Is there a destination for this delightful outing?" Sherlock asked while staring out of the cab window; the streets of London passed slowly by.

"The building down by the Thames, where they do community stuff, and other things like that. You know... night classes and youth clubs."

"Which class have you enroled me in?"

John sighed. He knew Sherlock would work it out quickly. All he had to hope for now was a good reaction from his flatmate.

"Astronomy."

"Really? How interesting." John could hear the sarcasm dripping from every word.

"It's from seven till eight," he continued.

Sherlock said nothing.

"The course runs for ten weeks. Shorter if not enough people go."

Still nothing.

John couldn't believe his luck. Sherlock wasn't making him feel like an idiot by sprouting out complicated nonsense about how useless it would be.

"Erm, Sherlock, are you OK? Because normally you'd be complaining well by now."

"You're being ridiculous, John. I am not complaining because I know that there is quite simply no point. You wouldn't understand my reasons. However, at the same time, I am not going because it would be wasting an hour of my life. Driver, take us back."

"Ignore him, you know what they're like when they don't want to go somewhere. Now, seriously Sherlock, don't be so stubborn!" John said exasperatedly. "This course could change your life completely. I mean, you might even find yourself with a few more friends afterwards."

Little did John know just how true those words would be...

* * *

"OK, so, to start off I'm just going to ask you some questions, find out how much you already know."

Sherlock, bored already, leant back in his seat and glanced round the class. Everyone there was so easy. In a minute he knew everything about all twenty of them. The only one to have caught his interest at all was the lady in the corner. She was young, about twenty-eight, and was a bit of a loner. No boyfriend. In fact, only one 'friend' at - her flatmate - but the fact that she was here showed that they weren't close friends. She had been close to her father, who had died about ten years previous, but not to her mother. Youngest child out of at least three, if not more. Family didn't have much money when she was a child. She still didn't, but the same couldn't be said for her family, who'd come into lots of money before her father's death. She was clever, he noted, she answered the question about Dwarf planets easily, without even thinking properly. but did she know about important things as well?

He'd worked it all out in less than ten seconds. So why was he still watching her?

"Man at the back: Curly hair; Coat; Scarf."

Sherlock looked away from the woman.

"I'll give you a nice easy one," the man said, grinning at him. "What is the centre of our Solar System?"

All the people who'd got their hardish questions wrong groaned. Some muttered about favoritism and how it wasn't fair.

"Don't know don't care," Sherlock replied, his gaze flicking back to the corner.

The room fell silent.

"You- you don't know?" the drunkard sat at the table in front of them said in shock.

"Why would I need to?" Sherlock replied.

"Well, it's... it's primary school stuff!"

"I'll give you a clue," the teacher quickly butted in before Sherlock could answer. "The Earth and other planets go round it."

"I really don't give one."

"Sherlock, it's the Sun," John told him quietly.

"Does it matter?" Sherlock asked. "Do I really need to know if the Earth goes round the Sun, round the Moon or 'round and round the garden like a teddy bear'?" He put on a silly voice for the last bit. "I am not going to fill up useful space in my brain with useless information that I will never need. Instead, I only remember important things that will help me with my life's work."

Everyone stared at him.

"Come on, John. We're leaving."

Sherlock stood and, after one last sweeping, disinterested pan of the room, left the classroom with a billow of ashen-grey wool.

John hurried after him, but just as he was about to have a go at Sherlock, a new voice spoke.

"Interesting speech. But what do you consider important? Logic and the like?"

Sherlock stopped halfway down the stairs and smiled. Spinning round, he faced the woman from the corner of the room.

"Coffee?"

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**Hmm. Wonder who she is? Well, I'll try and finish the next chapter by either weekend, or, if work drags me down, the end of weekend. It will not be beta-d, so hopefully you can live with that :P**

**My beta-reader came up with the idea for 'ashen-grey wool' because we decided that his coat looked like a wool coat and we thought it was a darkish grey colour. Also, I hope my deduction thing about the woman was OK! That was so difficult to write where it would actually make sense.**

**Just a quick plea to everyone who favourited my story, or put it on alert. Please review. I'd love to know what you thought of the chapters, why you favourited/alerted it, and what you think I could do better. Plus, reviews kinda make a writers day, as I'm sure everyone on FanFic would agree.**

**Thank you for bothering to take the time to read my offering into the wonderful world of Sherlock Holmes :)**

**Mouse x**


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